Wednesday Nights7:00pm - 10:00pm

Silver Drawing Academy is a private art school driven by the goal of helping you improve your drawing ability through live classes located in Simi Valley, California. Additionally, it will teach the business of art, what it takes to become an independent artist in this exciting emerging market, how to take control of your career to create your own path, how to develop the skills and mindset to communicate with clients, and what it takes to work in a studio environment. Basically, everything you need to IGNITE YOUR PASSION!

WHAT MAKES THIS UNIQUE

My goal in creating the Silver Drawing Academy Mentorship Program is for teaching new approaches to drawing and designing and for the purpose of creating a unique, intimate setting in my own personal classroom. The detached classroom offers a comfortable environment in which to learn. You are not just a student, you are personal guest of mine. By having limited seating, this experience adds a personal touch with a lot of one on one attention. Imagine, just 4 other students, yourself and your personal mentor, me. This class is open to all skill levels.

8-Week Character Design Program

Customized to meet your specific needs

Throughout this course, I will share with you the creative process of drawing that i go through and my personal techniques for producing successful character designs.

In my lectures, I will provide you with a better understanding of the drawing and design process, and give you tools with which to constantly improve your skills. This 8 week instruction course will build your confidence in drawing while inspiring you with new ideas that will help you grow continuously.

The class is built on opening lecture, demos and in class exercises and homework.

What Students are saying

Topics covered:

construction of heads, and bodies

body gestures

bow and arrow

verbadjectivity

facial expressions

Observation

blind feeling

Avoiding the ladder

Golden Section

Shape language

pushing your poses

character development

portfolio discussion

industry requirements

caricature

business of art

acting

principles of design

and many useful exercises

Supplies needed:

8.5 x 11 copy paper

Tracing paper

col-erase pencils

china marker

STUDENT TESTIMONIALS:

You don’t have to be at the beginning of your art career to benefit from Stephen Silver’s Character Design course.

I have been a professional artist for 25 years or more. I’ve worked in Feature Animation, Advertising, and Game Design and ultimately ended up creating my own greeting card company featuring my own cartoons. That said, I always felt that there was something lacking in my art, that it was decent but not truly the caliber of the professional artist I wanted to be.

I signed up for Stephen Silver’s Character Design class. I enrolled thinking that it would be fun to learn the tools of character design, and it certainly could only help my greeting card business. What I didn’t expect was that my drawing ability would make a drastic improvement. What had happened was that I had developed bad habits, I had become complacent with the way I drew, essentially lazy drawing, winging and faking it instead of truly understanding the form I was constructing it in two dimensions.

Stephen addressed that bad habit right away, making sure I was completely drawing through the object, closing the line gaps and really locking the forms together. Pointing out that not doing this creates a weak foundation, which is something you don’t want to build on, just like a house.

When I draw now, I think and ask myself a lot more questions. I draw with a sense of trying to understand and construct the form opposed to copying, winging or faking it. I ask myself things like …”What am I drawing?” “What does this line signify? “ ,”Does this form connect properly to the other forms?”. “Do I have the foundation and gesture the way I want it before I start adding details?” etc. These new habits and a thought processes I will use for a lifetime.

I thoroughly recommend Stephen’s class to anyone that feels their drawings are lacking oomph and may or may not know where the problem lies. Stephen will help you see the areas that are holding you back and give you a new way to approach your drawings.

You can become a better artist at any age!

-Michael Vash

Jenny - "One thing about the course that I enjoyed was how unconventional it felt compared to other courses that I have taken that involve drawing. I liked that the course was prepped with various experimental drawing exercises which not only keep the weekly routine from becoming monotonous but it does help the student keep on his or her toes and avoid falling into complacency."

Babetta - "I loved the lectures about art and becoming a more accomplished artist with my skills and abilities. I am constantly learning every day about caricature and expression that Silvers class gave. It gave me a chance to challenge myself with new theories and experimentation. Thank you Stephen Silver for your inspiration and your ability to express the true nature of your imagination."

David - "I signed up for a character design class and I got a lot more than that. I really found the inspirational business and life experience stories as beneficial as the art instruction. This class has reinvigorated my love for animation/ art and renewed why I got into this for a living."

Julia "Fitzy" - "I had the opportunity to take his Character Design course, and found that he was extremely thorough and very encouraging of all his students, regardless of skill level. He lays out his course in a very progressive way. Each weeks’ lesson builds upon the previous weeks. Whether you are new to drawing or a seasoned professional, he is sure to be patient and teach you what you need to know. Stephen is an amazing artist and teacher. I am honored to have studied under him and would highly recommend his classes."